


Happy New Year!

by ablindromance



Category: Dir en grey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-22
Updated: 2015-02-22
Packaged: 2018-03-14 13:38:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 966
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3412652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ablindromance/pseuds/ablindromance
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kyo in New York on New Year's Eve.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Happy New Year!

It was the happiest he had felt without chemical stimulus. 

Or so his demeanor suggested.

His presence among staff and strangers was slightly less scarce than usual, and it didn’t drag around the heavy weight it usually had when his mind was possessed by one thing or another. He even bothered to exchange greetings, partings, and well-wishes when entering and leaving various buildings. Those who spoke his native tongue responded in kind while those who did not still nodded politely and wished him well in a language that _he_ did not understand. The sentiment was still there. Though he spoke no more than usual and wasted no words unnecessarily, those closest to him could understand his mood as surprisingly light for the time of season. 

No one person could ever properly describe what went on in his head in the long moments when he didn’t speak. No one person could ever properly understand what went on in his head even when he did talk. He just _was_ , and now, in this moment, he continued to just _be_. Not unlike the many gargoyles peering from the ledges of their grand buildings, Kyo stood on the roof of Dir en grey’s New York-based recording studio and watched the bulky Americans far below. It was the dead of winter, December 31st, and a murderous twenty degrees outside. He had great difficulty in telling the difference between old snow and newly-formed chunks of ice from a recent rain. 

All in all, it would seem like a miserably drab setting: too cold, too wet, too windy, too noisy, too far away from home, too many people, and too many lights. And yet, all these foreign things combined into a force that pushed him far out of his comfort zone were almost welcomed due to the promise of a new start within minutes. The way he saw it, most new things were alien, ugly, beautiful in the beginning and would find their place with time. 

“So here you are. You couldn’t have picked a warmer hiding place?” 

Kaoru approached with a degree of caution; the graveled surface they stood on was just as slick as the pavement down in the icy streets and he wasn’t the most sure-footed goat in the studio. He’d taken one less fall than Toshiya and three times as less than Die. As a blast of wind hit him, quick fingers pulled the lapels of his trench coat tighter and flicked the collar up around his ears. Looking far less dramatic than Kyo being devoured up to the eyes by the collar of his own black pea coat, Kaoru came to stand beside him and partially shield his left side from the wind.

Kyo merely squinted up at him with what could have been taken as a grin before he turned back to people-watching and counting the number of cabs sliding down the street. “Where is everyone else?”

“Drunk. Or drinking.” Kaoru offered with a bit of a laugh. “The staff is having a sort of mini-party in the lounge. Once it’s over, I believe everyone will be able to make it to the hotel with a slow crawl. Die’s the only one that will have to be rolled there.”

“Typically so. Always lacking moderation…” Kyo said thoughtfully, not too surprised. “Probably still drunk from his birthday party.”

“Yep. But fuck if he doesn’t have an inhuman liver.” Kaoru shook his head, digging through his pockets. Frigid fingers produced a cigarette and a silver lighter; the cigarette was routinely lit and the lighter stuffed back into his pocket. Though it was a mindless gesture, the guitarist was sure to aim the smoke with the wind rather than against it for Kyo’s sake. “Even though you’re missing the festivities, I’m surprised you stayed among the public for so long.”

“Are they noticing my absence already?” Kyo asked with slightly raised brows, an amused note in his voice. He tucked his face further into his collar, vision nearly obscured as he braced against another strong gust of wind and smoke being carried far overhead.

“Yes and no. They know sneaking off is kind of your… thing. I noticed you were gone so I came up here to check on you.” He took another long drag, attempting to make this the world’s fastest smoke before the cigarette froze to his lips. “Sorry you had to be here and not at home in Japan. I tried to work things in our favor but the timing was against us. This was the best I could do.”

Kyo shook his head, not too concerned. “I always trust you to do your best, so I don’t blame you for anything. I don’t mind. You work hard.”

“Well you shouldn’t be alone so close to midnight,” he laughed, giving up and crushing his cigarette into the concrete ledge. “It’s custom, you know?”

“Afraid I’ll throw myself over the side?” Kyo nodded to the street, now packed body to body. The people below looked like fat, multi-colored ants with bells, whistles, streamers, and countless silver hats. A huge uproar suddenly rushed up to where the two men stood. Though English was not their strength, they understood this phrase because it had been said to them nearly every minute of the day for the last two days.

Kaoru hiked his brows and stole a glance at his phone. The display showed midnight in glaring white numbers.

“Oh—It’s midnight. Happy New Year, Kyo.” 

Hands in his pockets, Kaoru leaned to his right and pressed his lips to tendrils of Kyo’s hair right at his temple.

Bewildered that Kaoru would do something so foolish, Kyo turtled his way back down into his coat and waved the guitarist off in mock annoyance with a tattooed hand.

“Happy New Year. Nuisance.”


End file.
